Texas Senate ordered to study hot-button political issues

Updated 2:44 pm, Friday, October 9, 2015

AUSTIN – In a second wave of directives, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick on Friday ordered Senate committees to conduct studies on still more hot-button issues in Texas: Jail suicides and safety, relations between police agencies and the communities they protect and curbing so-called "sanctuary cities" in Texas that refuse to enforce immigration laws.

In a midday announcement, Patrick asked the Criminal Justice Committee to closely examine police safety and community engagement, as law enforcement faces continuing challenges in their relations with minority communities across the state. One requested detail: Make recommendations to reduce the number of injuries and deaths to or by law enforcement officers.

Amid growing concerns over Texas' growing suicide rate in jails, Patrick asked for a broad study of conditions in county and city jails, including a focus on mental-health monitoring, support and treatment in those lockups and in state prisons.

The panel was also asked to measure whether the state's so-called "diversion" programs are successful in correcting low-level offenders in community treatment and rehabilitation programs, rather than locking them up in a state prison. He also wants re-entry programs studied to see whether they are successfully reintegrating felons back into society, And to see whether in-prison vocational and educational programs are working like they should.

The Border Security Subcommittee was asked to study how to keep Texas cities from implementing so-called "sanctuary city" policies that prevent local enforcement of federal immigration laws, including a count of the crimes committed by undocumented workers in those locales.

That issue has been a top topic among Texas' GOP conservatives for years, but efforts to pass legislation banning sanctuary cities has derailed several times.

The Veterans Affairs and Military Installations Committee was asked to study veterans' mental health and health programs, including whether wait times and appointment backlogs at federal VA hospitals have been alleviated. Patrick also wants the panel to study whether state laws giving veterans preference in hiring at state agencies are working.